The Perfume Bee

On this misty, nearly-end-of-winter day, I felt drawn to spritz on one of my favorite springtime scents: Éclat d’Arpège. From the elegant house of Lanvin, Éclat d’Arpège was created by perfumer Karine Dubreuil and released in 2003.

This is a light, musky floral fragrance that starts off with a crisp, green lemony top note. It maintains a certain tartness as it evolves into the sweet, peachy floral center. The red peony and Chinese osmanthus give it a beautiful heart, which rests lightly on an ambery and musk base. This fragrance always reminds me of a beautiful summer day in London, which is where I first purchased it while on vacation in June of 2003. I remember with fondness carefully examining all of the new fragrances at Selfridges and selecting this as “the one” to bring back to the States with me. It has proven to be a wonderful, popular choice — one that I have received many favorable comments on.

It contains the following notes (from Lanvin):

Top Notes: Sicilian Lemon Leaves, Green Lilac

Heart Notes: Wisteria blossom, Green Tea Leaves, Peach Blossom, Red Peony, Chinese Osmanthus

Base Notes: White Cedar of Lebanon, Sweet Musk, Precious Amber

The Art-Deco bottle was designed in 1927 for one of the earliest Lanvin fragrances, Arpège. That fragrance was designed by Jeanne Lanvin for her daughter, Marguerite as a tribute to a mother’s love for her child.

This maternal love is represented by the perfume’s emblem, unique in its kind: a woman and child, reresenting Jeanne Lanvin and her daughter, in an attitude of loving tenderness. This emblem later became the symbol of Lanvin.

This is one of my favorite bottles, and everytime I look at the image of the little girl playfully swinging from her mother’s outstretched hands, I am touched by its tender poignancy.

Cost: 1.7-oz spray limited-edition bottle, $70. Available at Nordstrom.com. The entire collection is available at The Perfume House.

image source: Nordstrom

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Chanel has announced the launch of its newest fragrance for men, Chanel Allure Homme Sport. It was created by Chanel perfumer Jacques Polge (who, as you may recall, created the six new Chanel Les Exclusifs. Does this tireless man never rest?!?).
Described as “dazzling,” “fresh,” “sunny,” “gentle,” and “elegant,” this eau contains notes of citrus (mandarin orange, lemon, grapefruit, bergamot), elemi resin, cedar and white musks.

Cost: 5 fl-oz. spray bottle: €72 ($94.40 at today’s exchange rate), from March 16th.

image and notes source: OsMoz.

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Eau Sauvage, by Dior, was created in 1966 by perfumer Edmond Roudnitska. With top notes of lemon, rosemary and petigrain; heart notes of basil and water jasmine; and base notes of vetiver, it has been one of the best-selling fragrances in France for the past 40 years. Last Sunday’s Times Online (UK) offers a guide to this and seven other classic vintage men’s fragrances. The writer suggests that if you don’t know which fragrance to wear,

…then something that has lasted more than 50 years is a safe bet. You will find that vintage scents move with more grace than modern ones, and change more slowly on the skin. They are more feral, their vanilla dustier and their woods more mysterious. They are the product of old loves, the works of men long-buried but, amazingly, still bottled an for sale.

To see the list of 8 men’s classics, you can read the rest of the article here.

Eau Sauvage is available in 50-ml and 100-ml spray eau de toilette at nordstrom and saks.

perfume ad image: images de parfums.

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For those of you who want to know more about the very cool Los Angeles fragrance scene, have I got the link for you! This month’s OsMoz magazine features a wonderful “road trip” to L.A.,

where Agnes, our Made in USA fragrance expert, went to the hottest spots and chic-est boutiques to find out everything you always wanted to know about the perfumes, the designers and the stars…

Agnes discovered some really great boutiques and does a terrific job of describing them. For each locale, she highlights special and unique fragrances that may make you want to hop on the next plane to LA! To read the complete article, click here.

Enjoy!

image source: OsMoz

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Practice makes perfect, or so the saying goes. Many of us have found this to be the case when learning to play a musical instrument, learning a new sport, or attempting any number of new activities. Repetition, training and practice improve our skills in most areas of our lives. And yet, for some reason the thought of improving our ability to distinguish various scents is rarely considered or discussed.

Fortunately, this does not have to be the case. Even as wine connoisseurs are able to refine their sense of taste, so, to, can perfumers refine their sense of smell. And the good news for the rest of us is that such olfactory refinement is not limited to master perfumers (or “noses”). We are all “trainable” in terms of our ability to improve our scent recognition and memory. Granted, there are those with greater natural talents in this area, even as there are those people who are born with perfect pitch. But there is hope that we each possess the capacity to greatly improve our olfactory sense and, subsequently, our enjoyment of fine perfume.

Interestingly, some experts are of the opinion that scent training should be a regular part of a child’s education. They believe olfactory training should begin at an early age, when other skills are developing. For instance, renowned perfumer Christophe Laudamiel (co-creator with Cristoph Hornetz on the Thierry Mugler Parfums’ ‘Le Coffret’ for the movie, “Perfume, The Story of a Murderer”) has teamed up with the Fragrance Foundation to develop a program that he hopes will bring scent awareness training to school-aged children in all public schools. In a recent Boston Globe article, Laudamiel states,

We are now going into phase two of the program to find out what would be appropriate for the curriculum of schools….This is a time when kids are learning a new language or starting music or drawing. Scent is just another sense that they have to awaken.

Laudamiel hopes that olfactory training will enable people to develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for the fine notes in a perfume. He compares perfumery to music, architecture and painting. Understanding the notes and instruments involved with a symphony orchestra make going to a concert an even more enjoyable experience. Similarly, he believes scent education will enhance an individual’s appreciation for fine fragrances.

I agree wholeheartedly with Laudamiel’s assessment of our need for scent training. In light of that, I am embarking on my own personal “scent training” program. I have a lot to learn, and I will share the details and my progress in future posts. Stay tuned, and meanwhile, I’d love to hear about your own experiences with “learning how to smell.”

For further reading about Christian Laudamiel and his views on olfactory training, please see this 2004 interview as well as this recent interview on Basenotes.

photo source: National Science Teachers Association (2004)

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Cacharel (owned by L’Oréal) has announced the upcoming launch of its newest fragrance, Liberté (French for “Freedom”). Described as a “chypre orange juice,” it was created by International Flavors & Fragrances perfumers Olivier Polge and Domitille Bertier. It contains:

Top notes: bitter orange, plus zests of bergamot, citrus and mandarin;
Heart notes: white flowers;
Base notes: patchouli from Indonesia, vetiver and vanilla.

Liberté is scheduled to launch in Europe beginning this spring and in the U.S. probably in the second half of this year. It will be available in 3 sizes. In France, the 30-ml. eau de toilette spray will retail for 33 euros, or $43.60 at current exchange rates; the 50-ml. spray for 49 euros, or $64.75, and the 95-ml. edt spray for 62 euros, or $81.95.

Liberté’s tall, multifaceted orange bottle was designed to look like an abstract flower. It was inspired by the works of artist Dan Flavin, known for his beautiful creations with fluorescent light tubes.

For more information about this ‘thinking-outside-the-frame’ artist, please see the Dia Art Foundation website.

perfume image and information source: wwd.com.
Dan Flavin’s artwork: National Gallery of Art.

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Sometimes we just need to breathe. And if it takes a flacon of eau de parfum to remind us, all the better! Which is why I immediately went for Fresh Scents / Terri’s Breathe eau de parfum. An uplifting combination of Light Musk and China Rain, it is smells very crisp, clean and light. The whimsical label shows a line drawing of a woman surrounded by fluttering butterflies that look as if they are reminding her to take life a little less seriously. The entire line looks like it is designed to uplift and inspire.

Fresh Scents / Terri is the creation of perfumer Terri Weitzman. Terri lives in southern Californian and started creating her fragrances about four years ago. Her line consists of oils, lotions, body washes and bath & shower gels. There are 7 women’s fragrances and 2 for men:

• Dream - Notes of vanilla and fig.
• My LuLu - A blend of China Rain and Gardenia.
• Oh Baby! - A blend of China Musk and Pikaki.
• Breathe - A blend of White Rain and Light Musk.
• Zoe - A blend of Light Musk and Sheer Musk.
• Tangerine Kiss - Notes of cucumber, lime, watermelon and tangerine (available with a bronze shimmer).
• Berry Cute - A blend of blackberry and vanilla creme (with purple and gold shimmer).
• Peachy Keen - A blend of peach and vanilla creme (with peach and gold shimmer).
• My Man - A blend of bergamot and musks.
• Gregory - A blend of patchouli, ylang ylang, and leather.

The fragrances are available as 2-oz spray eau de parfum ($48); 1/3-oz. roll-on ($38 - first five fragrances only); and as a 10-piece sample set ($7 plus $6.95 s/h). The bath products cost $25 each. They can be ordered online at freshscentsterri.com and at select boutiques.

image source: freshscentsterri.com

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Fragrance designer Serge Lutens was recently awarded one of France’s highest cultural honors: the insignia of the rank of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters. Established in 1957, The Order of Arts and Letters recognizes artists and others who have contributed to furthering the arts in France and throughout the world. Within the Order, Commander is the highest rank and a maximum of twenty such awards are given each year.

In presenting the award, French Minister of Culture and Communication, Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres praised Lutens, describing

‘the immense talent of a true aesthete, a goldsmith of the senses, an extraordinary creator of images, who has made the quest for beauty his life’s work, and who has been a continual inspiration for the new artistic scene’ (photo and info source: osMoz.com.

Serge Lutens is an extremely innovative perfumer and is the genius behind the Serge Lutens Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido line of exquisite fragrances. Some of these include Iris Silver Mist, Tubéreuse Criminelle, A La Nuit, and his latest release, Rousse. For more about this niche line, please see my prior post.

Congratulations, M. Lutens!

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Clarins’ new summer essence is called Eau Ensoleillante, which translates as “Sunnying Scent.” Isn’t that delightful??? I, for one, am all in favor of anything that can be considered “sunnying.” It implies brightness and cheeriness of the highest order.

But what is it about this essence that gives it these solarial qualities? First of all, the liquid itself is orange-hued. The color orange is a tried-and-true mood-elevator.

Secondly, it has essential oils known for their uplifting qualities, particularly the citrus oils. (It also contains ylang-ylang, tonka bean and patchouli).

And finally, the essence contains extracts of soothing linden tree; griffonia, a precursor of serotonin; and vitamin-rich watermelon. Now, hold the phone! I must confess to being ignorant of griffonia altogether, let alone as a precursor of serotonin. But a little detective work (thank you, Wikipedia!) revealed the following:

1. Serotonin (5HT) is a neurotransmitter (chemical messenger in the brain) influencing many aspects of our health, including mood;
2. SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), also known as winter depression, is a mood disorder;
3. One possibility is that SAD is related to a shortage of serotonin;
4. The small African bean, Griffonia simplicifolia, is thought to act as a precursor to serotonin. It supplies 5-HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan), an amino acid that easily crosses the blood-brain barrier where it converts to serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine or 5-HT) in a natural process (source: Steven Schechter, N.D.)

The implication, of course, is that products containing griffonia can help raise serotonin levels, which in turn improve mood and thereby alleviate conditions of SAD.

medical disclaimer: Remember, I am not a medical doctor, nor do I play one on television. True, I am a dietitian, but that is another story…. For any medical questions or conditions, please check with your primary care professional!

Whether or not the Eau Ensoleillante has pharmacologically effective levels of griffonia is information I am not privy to. But the idea of adding pharmaceutically-helpful ingredients to fragrance is something I will be following with great interest. Meanwhile, I hope the Eau Ensoleillante smells as good as it looks!

Clarins image and notes source: OsMoz
Griffonia image source: www.europhyto.com

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Designer Stella McCartney has announced the launch of her new limited-edition fragrance for summer: Sheer contains notes of Bulgarian rose, peony, sugared lemon zest and green apple on a soft amber base.

Sheer will be available April 2007.

image source: aufeminin.com.

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